Plantations have a long history in the South, some dating back to the 17th Century. Does this make them more susceptible for haunting? The Myrtles Plantation Home has had a long history of owners. Some even believe that a few of them are still there after all these years. The house was built by General David Bradford. After almost a dozen other owners, strange sightings were starting to be reported more and more often. Today, the Myrtles is one of America’s top ten most haunted houses.

Laurel Grove, now known as “The Myrtles”, was built in 1796 by General David Bradford. Bradford’s leading role in the Whiskey Rebellion had him fleeing President George Washington’s army. He died in 1808, and his widowed wife sold the home to their son-in-law, Clark Woodruff. Woodruff later sold the home and its slaves to Ruffin Gray Sterling. Stirling and his wife, Mary, nearly doubled the homes size by adding many rooms onto it. The Stirling’s also gave the plantation its current name, “The Myrtles”. Ruffin’s oldest son, Lewis, is believed to have been stabbed to death in the home over gambling debts. Ruffin passed away in 1854, leaving the plantation home to his wife. In 1871 Mary Sterling’s son-in-law, William Winter, was shot on the front porch. He crawled up the stairs and eventually died in his wife’s arms. By 1951, after three more owners had come and gone, Marjorie Munson was now the owner of the plantation. She was the first to begin reporting strange occurrences in the house. In the 1970’s Arlin Dease and Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ward had bought the home. They completely restored it and got the giant plantation home into great shape again. James and Francis Myers were the next to own the home. They too believed that it was haunted, and they began to feature it in books and magazines. Teeta Moss is the current owner of the home, and uses it to run a bed and breakfast. The Myrtles has had its share of owners, and not surprisingly more than one of them has reported strange things happening inside.